Coming up this weekend in Kingston – Canada vs Puerto Rico in World League qualifying round

OTTAWA – With a berth in the sport’s richest tournament on the line, North American rivals Canada and Puerto Rico will battle in a two match series this Saturday and Sunday (August 20-21) at the World League qualifying final set for the K-Rock Centre in Kingston, Ont.

Both matches start at 7 p.m.

Canada heads into the series fresh from winning the Parnu International Cup in Estonia. The Canadians, ranked 22nd in the world, went undefeated in the tournament which also marked the return of star power hitter Alexandre Gaumont-Casias of Marieville, Que. In addition Dustin Schneider of Brandon, Man., was named the tournament MVP.

That victory capped what has been a solid season so far for the Canadians. Before leaving for Europe, they defeated Slovakia in the first round of World League qualifying at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa. They also won the bronze medal at the Pan Am Cup in June, a tournament at which they beat the Puerto Ricans twice. Gavin Schmitt of Saskatoon won two individual awards for his performances at that 10-country tournament.

The last time Canada competed in the World League was in 2007 when it placed 13th. The FIVB World League, now in its 22nd year, is a 16-country intercontinental tournament that runs for over a 6 week period every summer and offers the biggest cash prizes in the sport.

‘’Playing in the World League would allow us to have lots of international matches next summer,’’ said Canadian veteran Louis-Pierre Mainville.

The winner of this weekend’s series will be based on a formula of the winning team earning three points for a 3-0 or 3-1 win in sets and two points for a 3-2 win. The loser in the first instance would receive 0 points and one point for a 3-2 loss. The first tie-break is sets won and lost, the second tie break is points for and against.

Tourism Kingston’s Director of Tourism Marketing and Development - Rob Carnegie said: “we are very excited to host world class athletes in our town” “We hope this event will attract young volleyball players and motivate them”